Genocide- Bosnia

7/28/2019 Genocide- Bosnia

1/9

GenocideThe Bosnian Crisis


2/9

Back Ground

In Bosnia, Muslims represented the largest single population group by 1971. More Serbs and

Croats emigrated over the next two decades. In a 1991 census Bosnia's population of some 4

million was 44% Bosniak, 31% Serb, and 17% Croatian. Elections held in late 1990resulted in a coalition government split between parties representing the three ethnicities (in

rough proportion to their populations) and led by the Bosniak Alija Izetbegovic. As tensions

built inside and outside the country, the Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and his

Serbian Democratic Party withdrew from government and set up their own "Serbian

National Assembly." On March 3, 1992, after a referendum vote (which Karadzic's party

blocked in many Serb-populated areas), President Izetbegovic proclaimed Bosnia's

independence.

Far from seeking independence for Bosnia, Bosnian Serbs wanted to be part of a dominant

Serbian state in the Balkans--the "Greater Serbia" that Serbian separatists had long

envisioned. In early May 1992, two days after the United States and the European

Community recognized Bosnia's independence, Bosnian Serb forces with the backing of

Milosevic and the Serb-dominated Yugoslav army launched their offensive.


3/9

Massacres

Aided by Serbian guerrillas in Croatia, Milosevic's forces invaded in July 1991 to

protect the Serbian minority. In the city of Vukovar, they bombarded the outgunned

Croats for 86 consecutive days and reduced it to rubble. After Vukovar fell, the Serbs

began the first mass executions of the conflict, killing hundreds of Croat men and

burying them in mass graves.

The massacre in Vukovar was not an isolated event, but an anomaly that began to

spread to the rest of Serbian controlled Bosnia.

Another atrocity between Croat and Serbian forces was the Ahmici massacre of April,

1993. No one was spared when Serbs shelled the village and destroyed two mosques

as the youngest victim was a three month old baby boy who was gunned to death in

his crib. The oldest victim was a 96 year old woman. There were 120 estimated

deaths that day.
http://bosniagenocide.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/nermin-divovic-bosniak-child-killed-by-serb-sniper-in-sarajevo-bosnian-genocide.jpg


4/9

Executions

At this point, some of the worst genocidal crimes of the four year conflict occurred. InSrebrenica, a Safe Haven, U.N. peacekeepers stood by helplessly as the Serbs under

the command of General Ratko Mladic systematically selected and then slaughtered

nearly 8,000 men and boys between the ages of twelve and sixty - the worst mass

murder in Europe since World War II. In addition, the Serbs continued to engage in

mass rapes of Muslim females.


5/9

Ethnic Cleansing

The actions of the Serbs were labeled as 'ethnic cleansing,' a name whichquickly took hold among the international media.

The Serbs ethnic cleansing campaign included unlawful confinement,murder, rape, sexual assault, torture, beating, robbery and inhumane

treatment of civilians; the targeting of political leaders, intellectuals and

professionals; the unlawful deportation and transfer of civilians; the unlawful

shelling of civilians; the unlawful appropriation and plunder of real andpersonal property; the destruction of homes and businesses; and the

destruction of places of worship.


6/9

Mass Rape

Women and girls were kept in various detention centers where they had to live in

intolerably unhygienic conditions and were mistreated in many ways including being

repeatedly raped. Serb soldiers or policemen would come to these detention centers,select one or more women, take them out and rape them. All this was done in full

view, in complete knowledge and sometimes with the direct involvement of the Serb

local authorities, particularly the police forces.

Common profound complications among surviving women and girls include

gynecological, physical and psychological (post traumatic) disorders, as well as

unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. The survivors often feeluncomfortable, frustrated, sickened with men, sex and relationships; ultimately

affecting the growth/development of a population or society. Thus committing a slow

genocide according to some.


7/9

Concentration Camps

There were allegedly 677 concentration camps spread throughout Bosnia

during the war. They were structured similarly to those in Nazi Germany.

Living conditions were low

Hygiene was low

Death toll was High


8/9

Who is to blame?

The U.N. was incompetent and irresponsible in its handling ofthe Bosnian crisis. They failed to recognize irrefutable

evidence that genocide was taking place in Bosnia. Although nearly a decade later the U.N. finally recognized the

Serbs crimes as genocidal, it was already thousands of lives tolate.

Even though the U.N. failed to prevent genocide, they havemade an effort to bring Serbian war criminals to justice, andrepair the damage that they have done.

There is nothing that the U.N. can do now except learn fromtheir mistakes. In the future they need to make more direct andimmediate efforts to prevent genocidal crimes.


9/9

How can the power of one mans testimony

overcome the injustice of racial hatred?

In this case it wasnt the testimony of just one man, butthousands. It took nearly a decade of victims coming

forward and telling their stories for the world to come to

terms with what had happened.

Now that the U.N. recognizes the Bosnian genocide, theycan pursue those who are responsible.

Documents

Genocide- Bosnia